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So, in front of a crowd that looked to fill the Target Center about halfway, against the Utah Jazz on Wednesday night, coach Tom Thibodeau went with a makeshift starting lineup and hoped the Timberwolves would make do.

All they did was make history.

Derrick Rose, did, anyway. His two free throws with 13.8 seconds left gave him 50 points and the Wolves a 128-125 victory.

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It was amazing, frankly. Enough that Karl-Anthony Towns’ 28 points and 15 rebounds was something of an afterthought.

Rose’s regular-season high was 42. His previous career high was 44 — in 2011, his MVP season. As the clock wound down Rose’s Wolves teammates rushed the court and surrounded him as the fans chanted “M-V-P.”

Rose scored 13 points in the first quarter, three in the second, an amazing 19 in the third and 15 more in the fourth. Time and again he charged into the lane, going right at Jazz centre Rudy Gobert.

The Wolves, who won for the second straight time, led by five entering the fourth quarter, but the Jazz scored the first six of the quarter to set the stage for a back-and-forth final quarter.

Afterword, being interviewed on the court, Rose said, simply, that he worked his butt off.

“I play my heart out,” he said. “My teammates told me before the game just to play my game.”

Rose drove and scored on Gobert with 54 seconds left to give the Wolves a one-point lead. He scored again with 30 seconds left and scored with 13 seconds left to give the Wolves a three-point lead.

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With the game tied at 121, Jazz centre Gobert hit one of two free throws. At the other end Rose drove into the lane, faked Gobert, stepped back and scored with 54 seconds left. Fouled at the other end, Gobert made one of two free throws with 36.9 seconds left tying the game.

Out of a timeout, Rose drove and scored again with a push-hook with 30 seconds left. At the other end, out of a time out, Gobert missed. Towns got the rebound and hit one of two with 20 seconds left for a two-point lead.

But it was Rose’s two free throws moments later that iced the game.

Andrew Wiggins had 19 points, Taj Gibson and Josh Okogie 10 each. Six players scored in double figure for the Jazz, led by Donovan Mitchell, who had 26.

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